Tōru Oikawa
is a 3rd year student from Aobajousai High. He is the team's captain and setter. Hinata calls him the "Grand King." Appearance Oikawa is tall, good-looking, and in good physical condition. He has brown, wavy hair and brown eyes. Iwaizumi commented that he rarely shows a genuine smile, to which Oikawa defiantly retorted that his smiles are always genuine. He is popular with girls, who come to his matches just to cheer him on. Personality Despite his flirtatious nature (he is quite famous amongst female students, much to Tanaka, Hinata, and Iwaizumi's envy) and childishness (as pointed out by Iwaizumi and his nephew), he is an excellent all-round player and is extremely serious about volleyball. He's known to have a "bad personality" amongst both opponents and his own teammates because of his somewhat smug attitude. Oikawa also frequently makes a cheerful remark, but follows up with a serious or intimidating afterthought. Oikawa, however, seems to hold a grudge against Kageyama, whom he mockingly calls Tobio-chan. This is due to him feeling inferior to Kageyama, who is hailed as a genius setter since their time in Kitagawa Daiichi. He is hard working, as shown by his vigorous practices. He has even injured himself in training before. His own teammates have pointed out his rigorous schedule. In addition, Oikawa spends time watching past games of his rivals, observing their movements ahead of time and strategizing how to defeat them. Despite that, he still takes time off on Mondays for resting. His intelligence and game sense are also very high, as shown when he can point out their opponents' weaknesses in a short period of time. History A former member and setter of Kitagawa Daiichi. He won the "Best Setter Award" in his prefecture during his 3rd year in Kitagawa Daiichi. As a former upperclassmen and senior setter to Tobio Kageyama, he almost hit him once during a request of Tobio Kageyama to teach him to serve, but was held back by Hajime Iwaizumi. Plot Abilities Unlike Kageyama's genius setting technique, Oikawa's talent lies in his natural athletic ability, his skill to make full use of his team players, finding weaknesses in the opposite teams, sharp aims, and powerful serves. Within a short span of time on the court, he was able to point out that Tsukishima and Hinata were weak at receiving, and break Kageyama and Hinata's superhuman quick spike attack. This, however, is not without years of dedication and practices, which is probably why he was dumped by his previous girlfriend. His talent is even acknowledged by a top player from Shiratorizawa. Jump-Serve Oikawa is renowned for his powerful jump-serve, a technique he had seen on television and thought was amazing, so he worked hard since junior high to master the technique. He serves with pinpoint accuracy, often strategically targeting a member of the opposing team or using a different scheme to win a service ace. It is difficult to return, but Nishinoya's talent as a libero allowed him to do so skillfully. Because of the strain the jump-serve has on Oikawa's focus, his coach allows him to take time-outs and breaks alone to regain the concentration necessary to successfully execute them by focusing on the aspects that are easy to fumble. Observant Perception Both in-game and in daily life, Oikawa has a good sense of his surroundings and can effortlessly read others' moves and emotions. Because of this, he was able to pick up almost immediately on Kageyama and Hinata's strategy behind their quick spike attack. Natural Talent as a Setter Oikawa's tosses are made so that they are easiest for his teammates to hit, and he immediately asks how they can be improved afterwards. He draws out 100% of each individual spiker's potential. Relationships Oikawa is holds a cohesive bond with his teammates. With few words of encouragement and confidence, he can change his team's mood and atmosphere in the game. He cheerfully compliments them when they do well on a serve or return. But despite this, he often says unnecessary things and annoys his teammates with his frivolous behavior and teasing words. Iwaizumi Hajime Iwaizumi, often called Iwa-chan by Oikawa, is the latter's childhood friend as well as the vice-captain of his current team. They are shown to be close, Iwaizumi being the one person who keeps Oikawa in line within the team. However, Iwaizumi is the one to discipline Oikawa on the team, usually violently with kicks and volleyballs to the head. The two are in sync with each other on the court. After Oikawa had almost hit Kageyama and yelled about how he wouldn't be able to win against Shiratorizawa in the condition he was in and how he had to win, Iwaizumi angrily headbutted and scolded him, stating that he was conceited and wouldn't be able to win against Shiratorizawa alone because volleyball is a team sport for a reason and "makes the strong even stronger." Kageyama Tobio Kageyama was a junior of Oikawa's when they were in middle school, and it's often shown how much Oikawa dislikes him. Saying he "hates geniuses", Oikawa immediately recognized Kageyama's and didn't like the raw talent Kageyama possessed and often refused to teach him anything, stating that it would be troublesome to deal with him in the future as rivals and adding an immature remark back at him. Despite this, Oikawa often comments that he's no match when it comes to Kageyama's accuracy in tossing, which annoys Iwaizumi. During a practice match in junior high, Oikawa lost his patience and made multiple technical mistakes. He was then substituted by Kageyama, who impressively spiked and tossed. This frustrated Oikawa, which drove himself to work harder but all the while became more frustrated. While in this mood when practicing alone, the young Kageyama asked Oikawa to teach him how to jump-serve, to which he reacted violently and almost punched the boy in the face. Kageyama, however, ended up learning his skills from Oikawa by simply watching him. Since junior high, he believed that if he surpassed Oikawa, he would be the best setter in the prefecture. He holds a grudging admiration towards Oikawa and respects his volleyball skills, but does not care so much for his personality. He is currently trying to master Oikawa's jump-serve. During Karasuno's first official match with Aoba Jousai, both Oikawa and Kageyama get riled up by each others' taunts and jabs. Oikawa likes to purposely agitate Kageyama and throw his state of mind off-balance. Kageyama later approaches Oikawa, asking for advice on how to respond to Hinata's desire to spike "of his own free will" instead of shutting his eyes and hitting with full power. Kageyama states that Hinata doesn't have the skill and it's a ridiculous proposal. Oikawa replies that he should give it a shot, and if he doesn't he's just reverting back to his junior high days, that thinking his way is best is cowardly, and that it's Hinata who takes the initiative in attacks, not Kageyama. Ushijima Wakatoshi Oikawa's rival since junior high, he has never been able to win a match against him. He refers to him as "Ushiwaka-chan," much to his disdain. Surprisingly, Ushijima recognizes Oikawa's talent, calling him an excellent player and stating that he should have attended Shiratorizawa because he draws out the maximum potential of whatever team he is on. Trivia *In his free time, he coaches his nephew and other children at Lil Tykes Volleyball Classroom. *His favorite food is milk bread. * His current concern: When he tried to talk to Karasuno's manager, Shimizu Kiyoko, he got utterly ignored. (But she must just have been shy, and it's not like he's all that bothered by it, not even a little bit, not at all - Oikawa said to himself.) *He had a girlfriend that broke up with him because he was too absorbed in volleyball. * Nicknamed the "Grand-King" by Hinata Shouyou and 'Assikawa' by Iwaizumi. * The white knee pad on his right knee is in fact not a knee pad, but a knee supporter. * On Haikyuu's first popularity poll, he was ranked 5th with 5050 votes. Gallery Navigation Category:Characters Category:Male Characters Category:Aobajousai High Volleyball Club Category:Setters Category:Captains